salivate

[sal-uh-veyt]

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verb (used without object), sal·i·vat·ed, sal·i·vat·ing.

to produce saliva.

verb (used with object), sal·i·vat·ed, sal·i·vat·ing.

to produce an excessive secretion of saliva in, as by mercurial poisoning.

Origin of salivate

1650–60; < Latin salīvātus (past participle of salīvāre to cause to salivate); see saliva, -ate¹

Related formsun·sal·i·vat·ed, adjectiveun·sal·i·vat·ing, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for salivating

froth, run, spit, water, drivel, ooze, slaver, dribble, slobber, slabber

Examples from the Web for salivating

Contemporary Examples of salivating

But Bush administration neocons, salivating over regime change in Iran, spurned this extraordinary deal.
Oliver Stone and Peter Kuznick On How Obama Should Handle the Crisis In Syria
Oliver Stone, Peter Kuznick
October 15, 2013
The mysterious trailer for the sci-fi adventure (which opens on June 8) already has the Internet salivating.
'Prometheus' Interview: Charlize Theron’s Alien Fantasy
Ramin Setoodeh
April 20, 2012
The Saudis were salivating for North American birds, and Mr. Galbraith's Pigeon King enterprise would satisfy the hunger.
Why Smart People Are Dumb
Morley Safer
February 11, 2010
Haldeman: “Colson was salivating with glee at what they might be able to do with it.”
How Kennedy Brought Down Nixon
Chris Matthews
September 13, 2009
But it was largely the two salivating behemoths, Visa and MasterCard, which masterminded this.
Why Did Visa and MasterCard Get Off Scot-Free?
Adam Hanft
May 20, 2009

Historical Examples of salivating

Bindle had christened him Spit-and-Speak owing to Gugger's habit of salivating his words.
Adventures of Bindle
Herbert George Jenkins
At the same time, they counts on salivating the old Injun what fools them a-plenty.
Frank Merriwell's Triumph
Burt L. Standish
Huxham appears to have adopted the whole Sydenhamian practice of blooding, blistering, purging, and salivating.
A History of Epidemics in Britain, Volume II (of 2)
Charles Creighton

British Dictionary definitions for salivating

salivate

verb

(intr) to secrete saliva, esp an excessive amount

(tr) to cause (a laboratory animal, etc) to produce saliva, as by the administration of mercury

Derived Formssalivation, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for salivating

salivate

1650s, "cause to produce saliva;" intransitive sense from 1680s, from Latin salivatus, past participle of salivare, from saliva (see saliva). Figurative use in reference to anticipation by 1965. Related: Salivated; salivating.

salivating in Medicine

salivate

[săl′ə-vāt′]

v.

To secrete or produce saliva.

To produce excessive salivation in.